It was just another work day for Rafael Jimenez, a veteran tree trimmer in his 24th year on the job.
But as he stuffed branches from a Chinese elm tree into a wood chipper that sunny day in April 2008, his right hand became entangled in the branches and Jimenez found himself being jerked toward the steel knives.
The machine, which devours a 20-inch branch in a second, consumed nearly his entire body.
On Thursday, his wife and four children filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court alleging that the manufacturer of the machine, Michigan-based Morbark, knew for years that its safety features were insufficient and had done nothing to prevent injuries and deaths like Jimenez's.
The family's attorney, Edward Steinbrecher, said Morbark -- one of the largest manufacturers of wood chippers -- has taken the position in previous lawsuits that the operators have been at fault for any injuries.
The Morbark wood chipper has pull cords inside its chute designed to stop the machine in case of an emergency, but Steinbrecher says the cords are inadequate because they cannot be accessed by someone being pulled down the chute.
Larry Noch, Morbark's vice president of claims, declined to comment on the lawsuit or respond to Steinbrecher's allegations, saying his company had not received the suit. In depositions in previous lawsuits, Noch testified that the company was aware of roughly 75 to 90 injuries caused by its machines since 1997.
According to a 2005 report by the American Medical Assn., wood chippers were responsible for 31 deaths and 2,042 injuries from 1992 to 2002.
Jimenez, a 46-year-old immigrant from Guadalajara, Mexico, was working as a senior tree trimmer for the city of Inglewood at the time of the accident. His partner was at the top of a tower car trimming the tree, wearing earmuffs to block out the sound of the chipper.
A motorist spotted Jimenez being pulled into the machine and honked his horn to alert the partner, but Jimenez disappeared into the machine before he or the driver could do anything.
The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health conducted an investigation into Jimenez's death and issued three citations against Inglewood in October, including a serious violation for failing to develop a written emergency procedure to stop the machine. The city was ordered to pay a fine of more than $22,000, but has appealed the citation.
